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The following items were listed on the home page.

• Press release - Hate crime under-reported, says new research (16 August 2006)
• Press release - Crime victims' helpline relies on Reliance to raise funds for new 'phones and volunteer training (8 August 2006)
• Information about our courts martial service (7 August 2006)
• Press release - Government and Victim Support pilot improved services for victims of crime (3 August 2006)
• Victims' charity supports call to 'design out crime' (20 July 2006)
• Press release - UK victims' charity shares the secrets of attracting diverse volunteer workforce (29 June 2006)
• Issue 3 [pdf] of View - Victim Support's magazine (1 June 2006)
• Victims' charity seeks HR professionals for mutually supportive relationship (11 May 2006)
• Press release - One in four burglary victims' homes targeted again and a research report, Investigating the practical support needs of burglary victims [pdf] and the executive summary [pdf] - 20 April 2006
• Press release - Old Royal Naval College at Greenwich stages royal gala performance of historic court martial - 11 April 2006)
• Information on our national conference 2006 - 10 April 2006
• Press release - Skillsmark awarded to Victim Support - 9 March 2006
• Press release - Charities join forces to put young crime victims 'on the map' - 9 March 2006
• Victim Support's response to the Government's Green Paper, Rebuilding lives: supporting victims of crime - March 2006
• Press release - Hidden victims in the aftermath of homicide and research report, In the aftermath - the support needs of people bereaved by homicide - 22 February 2006
• Victims of hate crime needed for research project by UK crime charity - 3 February 2006
• Two plays, The trial of Penn & Mead and A Royal gala charity performance of The court martial of Admiral Byng will be performed in London in February and May 2006, respectively. All funds raised from the plays are for the London Crown Court Witness Service - 1 February 2006
• Victim Support welcomes review of 'confusing' crime statistics as new figures show rise in street violence - 26 January 2006
• Historic London courts provide stage for landmark trials - 20 January 2006
• Victimisation takes centre stage in school - 20 January 2006
• Victims say stopping re-offending is more important than prison - 16 January 2006
• Crime charity seeks 30 Londoners to give vital help to people affected by crime - 16 January 2006
• Victim Support comments on the publication of the Green Paper Rebuilding lives: supporting victims of crime (7 December 2005)
• Media statement on Amnesty International's poll on attitudes to rape (23 November 2005)
• Victim Support's Annual review 2005 [pdf] and Annual report and accounts 2005 [pdf] are now available.
• For information about the special one day conference that Victim Support Nottinghamshire's Young Witness Service is holding on Thursday 17 November 2005, see recent events.
• Press release - Impact of hate crime to be investigated (10 August 2005)
• Victim Support is one of the organisations providing support to people affected by the London bombings at the Family Assistance Centre. If you have been affected, you can find out more about how Victim Support can help you on Victim Support London's website. (19 July 2005)
• Latest issue of View - Victim Support's magazine (4 July 2005)
• New leaflet from Victim Support spells out home truths about domestic violence (24 May 2005)
• Victim Support appoints new chair of national Board of Trustees (16 May 2005)
• Diary note: Victim Support national conference 2005 (5 May 2005)
• Julian Opie gives contemporary edge to young victims leaflet (4 May 2005)
• 'Alarming' rise in classroom violence prompts free training offer from UK crime charity (29 April 2005)
• "Give up one hour next week to help victims", urges UK crime charity (20 April 2005)
• Victims of rape and sexual assault offered new information (31 March 2005)
• Want to see our PECS - Post Election Challenges for the new government? More information is on the website ... (20 April 2005)
• National conference 2005 - The conference is an annual event aimed at Victim Support members and people working in the criminal justice sector. It is a chance to update existing skills, learn new working practices and meet and exchange ideas with colleagues. The national conference 2005 will be held at the University of Warwick from 28-30 June 2005. More information, including the booking form, is on the website. (14 April 2005)
• The Office for Criminal Justice Reform (OCJR) has published the most recent draft of the Victims' code of practice. There has already been formal and informal consultation on the Code and the Government does not anticipate that this current draft will change significantly, but they want to make sure that it is right before preparing it for full implementation towards the end of 2005. If you are interested in sending your comments to the OCJR, the draft Code can be seen on the Home Office website, along with A guide for victims. (11 April 2005)
• 'Stay-in-bed-Britain' urged to get busy for sixty minutes by UK crime charity - please see our press release about the Sunrise Appeal. (23 February 2005)
• Victim Support's first nationally-run charity shop will open in Horsham in West Sussex on Friday 4 March, as part of its new initiative to enter the UK's charity retail market. The shop will be the first in a 20-strong network over the next five years. Shop manager, Karen Buckland-Bailey says: "Horsham is just the start of something much bigger. In the future, a chain of Victim Support shops will make a very significant contribution to funding our services. And a bonus is that a high street presence will remind people that we're here in their town and ready to help them recover from their experiences of crime." Victim Support's Head of Fundraising, Ken Madine, says: "Charity retail is doing well at the moment and we think Horsham is an ideal place to start our project. "The Victim Support shops will be established in clusters of seven, staffed by two managers and a team of around 30 volunteers. Following the opening of the shop in Horsham, work will begin on developing the remaining shops in towns throughout the southeast and the rest of the country. For more information, please see our press release. (22 February 2005)
• Grant from the Big Lottery Fund to help our services - children and young people affected by crime are set to benefit from improved Victim Support services, thanks to a £365,000 grant from the Big Lottery Fund. The money will be used over three years by Victim Support's community-based services to develop more outreach work in local areas, recruit more volunteers and forge stronger links with schools, youth groups and other voluntary organisations. Head of Research & Development, Peter Dunn, says: "This money will give a tremendous boost to our services and the people who use them, many of whom are vulnerable and in real need of support. We're hugely grateful to the Big Lottery Fund. We want children and young people to get effective support and practical help when they're victimised, so they can put their experiences behind them and grow into confident adults." (21 January 2005)
• View - the first issue of our new magazine is available on our website. (22 November 2004)
• On 15 November, Victim Support celebrated thirty years of providing support for people affected by crime and campaigning work at a reception at Lancaster House in central London, attended by the charity's President, HRH The Princess Royal. The Minister for Criminal Justice, Baroness Scotland QC, joined HRH The Princess Royal and 200 staff and volunteers from Victim Support, as well as representatives of criminal justice agencies and other charities, including the Home Office, Women's Aid and the Youth Justice Board. The Chief Executive of Victim Support, Dame Helen Reeves DBE, said: "This event is a wonderful opportunity to look back over thirty years and to pay tribute to everyone who has contributed to our success." Please see our press release ... (17 November 2004)
• The Chief Executive of Victim Support, Dame Helen Reeves DBE, has been awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws from Southampton Institute, in recognition of her 'outstanding contribution' to victims' services. Speaking before the ceremony on 2 November, Dame Helen said: "I am delighted to have been nominated by Southampton Institute for this wonderful honour, which acknowledges some of the hard-won achievements that have been made to address victims' and witnesses' needs in recent years. I very much appreciate the Institute's recognition of this important issue." Please see the press release ... (4 November 2004)
• National crime charity opens its doors for Inside Justice Week (1 October 2004)
• Send a card to support victims of crime - please see our press release. (2 September 2004)
• Appeal for helpline volunteers - please see our press release. (31 August 2004)
• Translated leaflets - Victim Support has produced a range of fact sheets to help minority ethnic victims and witnesses to cope with the effects of crime. The leaflets - Burglary, Violence, Helping your child cope with the effects of crime, Going to court, Working for victims of crime, and Thank you for using our service have been translated into Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Greek, Gujerati, Hindi, Punjabi, Somali, Turkish, Urdu and Vietnamese. The fact sheets and press release are available on the website. (2 August 2004)
• Appointment of Fundraising Executive - Victim Support has appointed Ray Wilkinson as the Chief Executive Officer of Workforce, the national charity's subsidiary consultancy training business. His work will involve promoting the work of Workforce, which helps businesses manage the impact of violence in the workplace. (2 August 2004)
• The Queen's Birthday Honours List 2004 - the Chief Executive of Victim Support, Dame Helen Reeves DBE, is delighted to announce that the following people have been awarded MBEs in the Queen's Birthday Honours list for 2004. They are: Marie Therese Rose at Victim Support Chorley; Valerie Morgan at Victim Support Nottinghamshire; Linda Husband at Victim Support Cornwall; Joan Cordell at Victim Support Swale; and Haydn Gigg at Victim Support Preston. (2 August 2004)
• Victim Support Hertfordshire has been awarded the prestigious 'Investors in People' award, which recognises excellence in the management, support and development of staff and volunteers. The award comes just six months after the charity (whose 150 volunteers supported 28,000 victims and witnesses of crime in 2003) restructured its entire branch and staff network, after the announcement of a considerable cut in its government funding. The Chief Executive of Victim Support Hertfordshire, David Padgett, says: "This is a significant achievement for us, when put into context with the incredible upheaval that all staff, volunteers and trustees had to go through last year. It clearly demonstrates that Victim Support Hertfordshire cares for the people who deliver support services to victims and witnesses in the county." (30 June 2004)
• Victim Support's National Conference 2004 - hundreds of staff from Victim Support will meet at its National Conference on 6 - 8 July to hear debates on the rights of victims and witnesses, the needs of the UK's diverse population, and the media's reporting of crime. Keynote speakers include Baroness Scotland, the Minister for Criminal Justice and Law Reform; Brian Paddick, the Metropolitan Police's Deputy Assistant Commissioner; Peter Tatchell, the gay and human rights campaigner; Tim Toulmin, the Director of the Press Complaints Commission, and Clarence Mitchell, the BBC journalist who reported on the murder of the Soham schoolgirls, Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman. During the event at the University of Warwick in Coventry, the charity's members and staff will attend and run workshops and seminars on topics including supporting young victims, dealing with major incidents, criminal injuries compensation, and working with the media. For more information, please see our press release ... (25 June 2004)
• Victim Support's National Conference 2004 - our annual event is aimed at members of Victim Support and external organisations or individuals. It provides an opportunity to get up-to-date with new developments and research, and come together with colleagues to discuss issues affecting victims and witnesses in a national context. This year, we have a revitalised programme with more workshops than ever before and speakers including:
  • Baroness Scotland
  • the Head of the Press Complaints Commission
  • a BBC reporter involved in the Soham case
  • and Trevor Philips, Chair of the Commission for Racial Equality
  .
  The 2004 National Conference takes place from the 6 - 8 July at our usual venue, the University of Warwick. For information about the conference and to book your place, please see recent events ... (27 May 2004)
• A review of Victim Support's work has highlighted the extent of its local services to support young people who have been affected by crime. In Humberside, school children aged 5 - 13 are offered information and help after a crime, and at Victim Support and the Witness Service Bolton, staff and volunteers are working with other agencies to target homophobic bullying in schools. Secondary school students in Brent in northwest London are working with their local branch of Victim Support to focus on the effects of domestic violence and gun crime, while Victim Support Cornwall's ABC (Anti-bullying in Cornwall) initiative now employs three project workers across the county. For more information, please see our press release ... (17 May 2004)
• Euro 2004 fans will be offered support in Portugal by the country's authorities, British police officers and Victim Support, thanks to a new initiative set up by Victim Support Trafford. For more information, please see our press release ... (13 May 2004)
• Victim Support and ASDA urge crime victims to seek support in supermarkets ... (13 May 2004)
• A recent recruitment drive at Victim Support Bradford and District has attracted a record number of new recruits. Thirty prospective volunteers contacted the branch to join the teams in and around Bradford. Sixteen people are now being trained to provide free and confidential support and information to victims and witnesses, and a further 14 people will be trained in the coming months. Nearly all of the volunteers will work in the Bradford area, while three will join an eight-strong team to support people bereaved by road death. (29 April 2004)
• Victim Support will join other leading victims' organisations at a major conference in central London on Wednesday 28 April to discuss the Government's strategy for victims and witnesses of crime. The National Victims' Conference, Supporting and protecting victims - making it happen will bring together victims' groups and criminal justice agencies, including Women's Aid, Roadpeace, Support After Murder and Manslaughter, Prison Service, Youth Justice Board and the USA's National Centre for Victims of Crime. The conference will provide an opportunity for the Government to focus on its national strategy, as well as look at current and new developments within the criminal justice system. (28 April 2004)
• Victim Support Westminster volunteer, Paul Parry, is cycling from A to B to raise money for the organisation ... but it'll take longer than you might imagine. Paul, who's 24, will cycle from a small village in Norway, called A, to a town in Nebraska, USA, called B, in aid of Victim Support and the British Red Cross. He'll set off from Kennington Park in South London at 11 am on Friday 30 April to cycle to Heathrow to catch a plane for Norway - and the start of his marathon bike ride. He will be using a tandem to enable friends to join him for various legs of the journey, which takes in two continents and nine countries and involves hitching a ride on a transatlantic ship. He says: "I've become very aware of how much support is needed by victims of crime, so I'm sure the money will be put to good use by Victim Support and I'm grateful to everybody for their encouragement and donations." The Chief Executive of Victim Support, Dame Helen Reeves DBE, says: "Paul is certainly 'going the distance' for us, so I wish him well!" Read more about Paul's amazing trip and see how you can donate ... (28 April 2004)
• British personnel at service bases in England, Wales and Germany will now be offered support and information at courts martial under a new agreement between Victim Support and the Royal Navy, the British Army, and the Royal Air Force. (20 April 2004)
• The hate crime co-ordinator at Victim Support Luton, Kamal Acharya, talks to The Guardian about his work over the last 11 years to offer support to victims of racially-motivated crime. In the interview with Mark Gould, Kamal admits that not even comprehensive training can prepare him for some of the worst examples of hate crime, and gives examples of how he and his colleagues help people 'move on' after becoming a victim. Please see The Guardian ... (8 April 2004)
• Victim Support has produced new guidelines, Practice guidance for supporting victims of domestic violence, to help its member charities provide support to male and female victims. It includes sections on safety, forms of abuse, support for parents and disabled people, and working with young victims. Victim Support's Head of Research & Development, Peter Dunn, says: "These guidelines will help our staff and volunteers provide a safe, confidential and relevant service. As well as continuing to support female victims of domestic violence, we also want to reach out to male victims, people in same-sex relationships and older people who are abused by their children." (8 April 2004)
• Victim Support Westminster are organising a fundraising event at the Comedy Store in London on 10 May 2004. Come along and support a great cause ... (8 April 2004)
• We have responded to the Government's consultation Compensation and support for victims of crime. Our response is based on Victim Support's experience of helping nearly 20,000 applicants each year with criminal injuries compensation claims. If you have any questions or comments about the issues raised in the response, please contact Anthony Forsyth (020 7896 3872/ anthony.forsyth@victimsupport.org.uk), Policy Officer at the National Office. (8 April 2004)
• Victim Support Oxfordshire and Thames Valley Police are working together on a new one-year pilot scheme to help victims of domestic violence. A liaison worker, appointed by Victim Support and paid for by Oxford's Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership, will be based at Thames Valley Police's domestic violence unit in Cowley. The Area Manager of Victim Support Oxfordshire and chair of Oxford Domestic Violence Forum, Joanna Fenstermacher, has welcomed the move.
  (31 March 2004)

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